U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, who delivered the Republican response to President Barack Obama's State of the Union address and is being eyed as a future presidential candidate, will be the main speaker at the annual Pasco Republican Reagan Day Dinner on April 30 at Spartan Manor. Rubio made headlines two years ago at the annual Pasco GOP fundraiser when former Gov. Jeb Bush, the event's keynote speaker, endorsed him for Senate against former Republican Gov. Charlie Crist, who ran his campaign as an independent. Crist recently became a Democrat and is being viewed as a possible challenger to Republican Gov. Rick Scott. GOP state committeeman Bill Bunting said he hopes Scott will attend the dinner as well. "I'm working on it," he said. Rubio told attendees at the 2010 dinner that a year before, he was 30 points behind in state polls. Pasco's GOP became the first group to overwhelmingly endorse Rubio in a straw poll. "As Pasco's straw poll goes," said Rubio to applause, "so goes the Republican primary." Visit pascogop.org for information.

DADE CITY

Early budget musings: raises

Four months into this fiscal year, City Commissioner William Dennis is gearing up for the next budget talks, expected to begin in late spring. At the close of the commission meeting Tuesday evening, Dennis said he wants to see a proposed budget this year that includes a 3 percent raise for city employees. He also wants a budget that reflects the total needs of the city, without being restrained by the tax rate. City commissioners typically finalize and vote on the budget in September, just before the fiscal year begins Oct. 1. City employees received raises of one-half to 2 percent in the 2011-12 budget and before that, a minimal raise in 2007, said City Clerk Jim Class. The commission recently passed an ordinance tripling city commissioners' pay from $100 to $300 a month and boosting the mayor's monthly salary from $150 to $450, effective next fiscal year. Dennis and Commissioner Scott Black opposed the ordinance, saying they wanted to discuss the pay hike in conjunction with budget talks later in the year. City commissioners have had the same salary for at least 20 years.

NEW PORT RICHEY

Our Lady Queen of Peace turns 100

Our Lady Queen of Peace Catholic Church will celebrate its 100th anniversary with a Centennial Mass at 4 p.m. Saturday at the church, 5340 High St. Bishop Robert Lynch will preside. There will be a multinational flag procession to celebrate parish diversity and light refreshments. Due to the anticipated crowd, parishioners can participate in the Mass via a simultaneous video broadcast in the parish hall. The celebration will continue at 6:30 p.m. March 9 with a free concert featuring Desert Rain Band and Act One 5. Call (727) 849-7521 or visit ladyqueenofpeace.org.

TAMPA — Washington is on to Vegas. The Lightning is not. So we asked the Times' Lightning coverage team for the single biggest reason Tampa Bay isn't headed to the Stanley Cup final. Here's their answers:Roger Mooney, staff writer: Th...

TAMPA — Hours before the puck drops at Amalie Arena for Game 7 of the Eastern Conference finals, the ice crew boss talks about putting off any sign of the end for as long as possible."We don’t want to see the front-end loaders," says Tom Miracle, who...

APOLLO BEACH — Tampa Electric Co. is taking a big step away from coal. The Tampa-based utility is converting its coal-fired Unit 1 at its Big Bend Power Station to natural gas and retiring coal-fired Unit 2 in 2021.Five workers died in June 2017 afte...

VERO BEACH — To become the first Pasco County team and just the third from the area to win consecutive state titles, Land O’Lakes knew it had to get past a familiar — and determined — opponent in Thursday’s Class 6A championship game.The Gators faced...

Eight women have accused actor Morgan Freeman of sexual harassment or inappropriate behavior on-set, at his production company, and during press junkets, according to a report.CNN reports that 16 people have spoken out against Freeman’s alleged misco...

As a fifth-grader, Aleesha Mance wrote an essay about her sister’s killer, explaining how peer pressure and drugs led the 17-year-old to make a deadly choice.
In high school, she searched for his name online. She read news articles about a tee...

TAMPA — Work is underway to improve pedestrian safety on Bayshore Boulevard, the signature Tampa roadway popular among walkers, joggers and bicyclists where a mother was struck and killed by a car Wednesday while pushing her 21-month-old daughter acr...

TAMPA— The Catholic Diocese of St. Petersburg confirmed Thursday that the three men involved in the Bayshore Boulevard crash that killed an Ohio mother and critically injured her 21-month-old daughter are recent graduates of Tampa Catholic High Schoo...

TAMPA — Before Jessica Raubenolt was fatally struck by a speeding black Mustang on Wednesday, the gray skies she had seen all week had turned blue so she decided to take her baby out in the stroller. Her husband David had just completed his flight ce...

Home sale prices continued to rise both nationally and statewide in April as a prolonged dearth of available homes on the market is making it tough on buyers. A total of 24,804 single-family homes changed hands across Florida last month, up 4.1 perce...